GEOG*3020 - Global Environmental Change
Course Description
This course studies the social drivers of global environmental change focusing on dynamic interactions among socio-economic systems, governance institutions, and biophysical processes. Specific attention is given to the causes of climate change, its intersections with other global environmental changes and issues, and implications for people and the places they call home.
Note: This course can be taken individually or as a part of a certificate program.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, the learner should be able to:
- Define climate, describe the greenhouse effect, and discuss post-industrialization emissions and climate change trends and patterns driven by human activity;
- Summarize the history of the United Nations and outline key meetings, agreements, development goals, and other events important to the integration of environmental concerns into this international body;
- Discuss and provide examples that support the claim that environmental change is uneven and socially complex;
- Describe key methods and approaches used in climate and environmental science and explain how indicators help us to track and monitor the social-ecological impacts of global environmental change;
- Explain achievements, challenges, and advances in global environmental governance and discuss reasons for 'hope' in the face of global environmental change;
- Illustrate and apply key course concepts, including (but not exclusive to) mitigation, adaptation, sustainable development, environmental (in)justice, double exposure, common but differentiated responsibility, and social-ecological systems; and
- Synthesize research on a specific country, an economic sector within that country, and climate science projections relevant to that country and sector.
Course Topics
- The Greenhouse Effect, Global Warming, and Climate Change
- The United Nations and International Action on Global Environmental Change
- Global Environmental Change – Uneven and Socially Complex
- Taking Stock and Thinking Like a Social Scientist
- The UN and Efforts to Address Global Environmental Change
- Sustainable Development as a Response and Approach to Global Inequality and Rapid Environmental Change
- Global Surface Temperatures
- Extreme Weather and Climate
- The United Nations’ Approach to Global Environmental Change – Limits and Progress
- Caring, Sharing, and Talking About Global Environmental Change
Additional Requirements
Prerequisite(s): 7.50 credits
Assessment
| Assessment Item | Weight | Learning Outcomes |
| Quiz | 20% | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 |
| Project Proposal | 15% | 3, 7 |
| Major Course Project | 30% | 3, 4, 6, 7 |
| Small Group Discussion | 15% | 3, 4, 5 |
| Take-Home Final Exam | 20% | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Total | 100% | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
Applies Towards the Following Certificates
- Certificate in Environmental Citizenship : Electives
- Certificate in Environmental Conservation : Electives
Technical Requirements
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*Course details are subject to change.